


Fading

by WriterFreak001



Category: Scorpion (TV 2014)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-12-07
Packaged: 2019-04-24 14:11:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14357127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WriterFreak001/pseuds/WriterFreak001
Summary: Post Season 4 Finale. My attempt for a fix-it fic between Waige. I promise it'll get better.





	1. Chapter 1

**WriterFreak001:**

I’m still very upset with the finale, but renewal or no renewal, we all need to help each other out and provide the best therapy we can offer. I was furious with how Paige treated Walter, embarrassing him in front of everybody, listing his faults and failures, not even giving him a chance to explain things, and I hated how everyone just left Walter and blamed him for things out of his control. I could rant all day, but then I wouldn’t be able to write the content below.

* * *

 

 **Title** | Fading

 **Fandom** | _Scorpion_ (CBS)

 **Description** | Post Season 4 Finale. My attempt for a fix-it fic between Waige.

 **Rating** | This fanfiction will be rated T.

 **Disclaimer** | I don’t own Scorpion. (And at this point, I’m kinda glad.)

* * *

 

 

> _“You sometimes think you want to disappear, but all you really want is to be found.”_ **― Kid Cudi**
> 
> * * *

** Fading **

** Chapter One **

**~ SCORPION ~**

 

He should have never trusted them.

He should have never offered them a home… a place to belong… a family….

 _What family?_ Walter slammed his suitcase shut and roughly zipped it closed. If he had known… if he had only known that they were going to stab him in the back, steal his clients and disintegrate his company, he would have never given them a single damn thing.  

But that was a lie, and he knew it. While he regretted ever taking a chance on _her_ , he couldn’t say he regretted mentoring her son. They had some good times, and the poor boy was caught in the crossfire. Not once had Walter seen him since his mother left his life for good, but he couldn’t blame the child. After all, it was initially Walter’s fault everything went sideways. He was mature enough to at least acknowledge _that_.

He would admit that inviting Florence was not a good idea (regardless of not knowing her feelings), but he stood by his argument that _nothing_ happened, and nothing ever would happen. He made sure of that when he flat-out turned down her dating proposal, angry at the blonde woman for even asking him such a thing. After Scorpion’s funds were nearly depleted, Florence didn’t stick around and sought work in Elia’s chemistry division. For a while, whatever was left of Scorpion was just him and Cabe…, but eventually, due to the company not making enough revenue, Cabe was asked to handle Team Centipede instead.

Walter gave him his blessing when he had left, and even though he didn’t voice it, he hoped Cabe would look out for Paige and Ralph… keep them safe. Walter didn’t have that right anymore, and he doubt he ever would.

Two long, cruel months of Scorpion following in Centipede’s shadow eventually destroyed Walter’s reputation, and he was forced to apply for a computer tech job at a university to pay for his loans and outstanding bills.

Scorpion was then no more.

It was a stupid dream anyway.

After working at the local university for a month, Walter was able to use the money he saved to purchase a small apartment downtown, and he was currently in the process of moving. Without a company… without a cyclone… it was a waste of space and money to continue living in the garage. And besides, the sooner he got rid of that thorn on his side, the better. There were way too many memories in that loft that he wanted desperately to forget.

And luckily for him, he was meeting up with an interested buyer the next day to settle the sale.

As he headed down the steps from the loft to the former office space, he glanced back up the stairs and took a deep breath.

This was for the best.

Slowly exhaling, he descended the rest of the stairs and dragged his suitcase across the hard floor as he strolled towards the entrance. He paused before touching the handle and took one last moment to look around the very empty space. Once Scorpion lost its revenue, he had to sell almost everything to keep Cabe onboard for a while.

His eyes swept the office area and stared at the column next to where _she_ had sat. They had shared their first kiss there… That had been an experiment too. One which also eventually lead to heartbreak.

He closed his eyes and blew out a breath as he blinked back his tears.

He wouldn’t cry. He refused to cry. She didn’t deserve his tears.

Once everything he was carrying was in the trunk of his car, he sped away from the garage, hoping to never see that godawful building again.

…

That afternoon, he drove to a phone store and switched out his phone for an international one. Then he went to the bank and withdrew all the money he had left before going back to his apartment. He made sure everything was still packed and nothing was forgotten. Once the sale on the garage was complete, he was going to deposit that money into his bank account and wirelessly transfer it to a new account that can be accessed far, far away from Los Angeles. The money he recently withdrew was for travel expenses until he arrived at his destination.

Walter didn’t sleep a wink that night.

* * *

 

“Thank you for your time, sir. I hope the garage fits your needs as it once did mine,” Walter said with a forced smile as he shook the tall, broad-shouldered man in front of him. “I best be going.”

“If anyone is to look for you, where shall I send them?” The gentleman asked politely.

Walter hesitated for a moment and drew in a slow breath before answering. “Tell them… not to look for me.” He dipped his hand into his pocket and tightly clutched two notes in his hand. After a few seconds, his shaky fingers lifted them up towards the man. “And if a mother and son named Paige and Ralph ever stop by when you’re around, give them these.” Without another word or explanation, the genius left, climbed into his car and drove off to the bank.

There wasn’t a heist this time.

* * *

 

He had most of his belongings shipped to his destination in small increments over time, leaving him with only a luggage bag and a small backpack to bring with him. He met with his landlord and terminated his lease agreement effective immediately. He would no longer need to live there anymore.

Without so much of a trace, Walter picked up his belongings, dropped them into his trunk and then slid into the car after shutting the door. And without anything to hold him back, he said goodbye to Los Angeles, perhaps forever.

It was time for Walter Patrick O’Brien to go back home.

* * *

* * *

**WriterFreak001:**

Please let me know what you think! :)

This is the first real inspiration I’ve had for writing waige stories in months (strange, huh?)

This was originally going to be a one-shot, but like I said, my muse took over.


	2. Chapter 2

**WriterFreak001:**

**Thank you so so so so much for the reviews! They’re overwhelming! ♥**

* * *

 

 **Title** | Fading

 **Fandom** | _Scorpion_ (CBS)

 **Description** | Post Season 4 Finale. My attempt for a fix-it fic between Waige.

 **Rating** | This fanfiction will be rated T.

 **Disclaimer** | I don’t own Scorpion. (And at this point, I’m kinda glad.)

 

* * *

_“They say time heals and makes us forget, but what two people shared can never be erased.”_ **―** [ **Shannon L. Alder** ](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1391130.Shannon_L_Alder)

* * *

* * *

 

** Fading **

** **

** Chapter Two **

**~ SCORPION ~**

“Here’s that report you wanted me to write up on assisting in that roadside surgery a few weeks ago,” Toby said as he dropped a small packet of paper on top of Paige’s desk. “You should be proud of me for this one,” he grinned with satisfaction as he folded his arms in front of his chest. Paige raised an eyebrow, but before she could ask, he added, “For once, I didn’t putz around and jot quick, hurried answers.” He waited as she thumbed through the packet and then beamed brighter. “You’re welcome.”

“I’m actually impressed, Toby,” Paige gave him a small smile as she filed the report away, “I knew you could do it.”

“It was nothing, really.” Toby swatted his palm as if he was pushing her praise away. “Glad to help.” He noticed the bandage on her arm. “Have you heard back from the hospital about your lab results?”

Paige shook her head slowly. “Now that you mention it, I haven’t. So, that must be a good thing.”

“Well, if they don’t call in a few more days, be sure to call them back. Lyme Disease isn’t something to be taken lightly; we’re just lucky Happy noticed that tick on your back shoulder during our plane ride back to LA. Have you noticed any redness or swelling around the bite?”

“It itches a little, but that’s about it.” She thought for a moment. “Does Lyme Disease make you nauseous?”

“Hmm… Sometimes, but not always.” Toby touched his chin. “Do you mind if I take a look?”

Paige shook her head and lowered her left shoulder sleeve as she spun around in her chair to give him a better angle. He inspected it closely. It was a little red, but there wasn’t a blotchy circle surrounding it. “It doesn’t look like it’s infected,” he said as he moved away from her shoulder and back around to face Paige. “But I wouldn’t stop applying that ointment, just in case.”

“Don’t worry,” Paige playfully saluted the shrink, “Sylvester’s been very good about making sure I apply it daily.”

Before Toby could comment, Paige’s cellphone blasted from inside her purse. She reached down to pick it up and glanced at the caller ID. “Well, speak of the devil. It’s the hospital.”

“Put it on speaker,” Toby said, grabbing her phone. “I want to hear what they say.” He then looked up at Paige. “Is that okay?”

“Sure.” She nodded. After all, how bad could it be?

Toby went ahead and swiped his thumb across the bottom of the screen to answer the call and then pressed the speaker button. “Hello?” Paige leaned forward as Toby brought her phone closer to her.

A young, high-pitched voice filled the office. _“Hello, this is Nurse Katie from LA General. I’m calling for a Paige Dineen?”_

“This is she.” Paige replied, inwardly nervous. “Are my lab results done?”

_“Yes. To verify, please give me your Date of Birth.”_

“Four, Thirteen, Nineteen Eighty-Six,” Paige said a little too suddenly.

She could hear the nurse typing in those numbers on the other side of the line. _“Thank you. All right, let’s see here._ ” Katie paused and hummed to herself for a few seconds. _“Ah! Here we go. Looks like Dr. Elliot would like you to come in for a secondary appointment for another examination.”_

Paige’s heart skipped a beat. “So, I have Lyme Disease, then?”

 _“No,”_ the young nurse replied, _“Your blood results tested negative for that one. As a safety precaution, we always run additional tests when testing for specific types of diseases just to be certain that there aren’t any other concerns we’re not currently aware about. During your last visit, you did mention you were experiencing some dizziness and headaches, correct?”_

“Yes, but I could have been tired.” Paige pursed her lips. “We did do a lot during that week.”

 _“Still, to be sure,”_ Nurse Katie clicked her tongue, “ _Dr. Elliot would like to meet with you sometime later today and discuss your latest lab results in person and then run some some more tests. Don’t worry, it’s a formality we execute to cover all of our bases.”_

Paige bit her lip and slowly looked at Toby as if she was asking for permission. “Okay… what time?”

_“How does 1:30 p.m. work for you?”_

Paige couldn’t think of anything she had planned. “Sure. That’ll work.”

_“Okay. We’ll see you then.”_

For a few seconds, Paige sat still as the line ended before turning her attention to Toby. “What do you think they want to test?”

The shrink did have somewhat of an idea, but he decided to keep it too himself for now, not wanting to jump to conclusions just yet. “Not sure. Would you like me to accompany you? Happy is out all day, visiting her father. Sly’s cleaning his apartment… Again.  I’ve got nothing to do until the wife comes back.”

Paige slowly nodded with an appreciative smile. “Yes. Thank you.”

As Toby walked back to his desk which was now next to his beautiful wife’s workshop, Paige heard the door to their office complex swing open before slamming hard. Paige ignored Cabe’s newly habitual anger and continued typing her report for their most recent case. It was when he shouted “DAMMIT” and flung his phone across the room when she finally acknowledged him.

“What’s wrong this time?” She asked, a little snippier than usual.

Cabe didn’t answer and stormed over to his phone and picked it up, surprisingly unscathed. She watched him closely and noticed how he swiftly touched his phone screen and placed it to his ear. A few seconds later, Cabe was close to chucking his phone again, and this time, it was unlikely it would come back without injury.

“I won’t ask you again,” Paige frowned as she pushed away from her desk and approached the angry man, “what’s wrong? I mean, I know you’re usually grumpy in the morning ever since you came to work for us, which I don’t particularly understand but whatever, but this morning, you’re more than grumpy. You’re pissed off. What did we do this time?”

Cabe glanced at her, incredulously. “Are you even hearing yourself? The Paige Dineen I knew and loved like a daughter didn’t speak to her elders like that, no matter what.”

“Since something is bothering you, I’ll let that slide, but if you want to make this arrangement work, then you need to calm down and tell me what’s wrong.” Paige paused but then stressed, _“Open communication_ is the only way a business can thrive.”

“Don’t ask me to answer that,” Cabe spat as he took a seat at the table. “You won’t like my answer very much.”

Paige thought for a moment. “Fine. Let’s play a game then. Twenty Questions, of sorts. I’ll ask a question, you have to answer. You then ask me a question, and I’ll answer as well. We’ll go back and forth until we have no questions left.” She took a seat down in the chair across from Cabe. “Now. I’ll go first. Ever since you left Scorpion and came here, you’ve been somewhat of an ass. Why won’t you act a little nicer like you used to?”

Cabe snorted. “First of all, you’ve got it all wrong, Missy. I didn’t leave Scorpion. I was apprehended by Homeland and was forced to handle Centipede instead. If Homeland didn’t coerce me to leave Scorpion, then I never would have. Scorpion was the company I placed my faith in. Not Centipede.”

“And why can’t you have faith in Centipede?” Paige’s eyebrow twitched. “We’re basically the same people.”

“It’s my turn to ask the question,” Cabe snapped, choosing not to answer her query.

“Fair enough,” Paige muttered indifferently as she leaned back against her chair. “Fire away.”

Cabe didn’t even have to think. “Starting Centipede, was it your idea?”

“Initially, yes, but all of us agreed on the name, and Sly, Happy and Toby voted to have me manage the team. It’s a democracy here. Not a dictatorship.” Paige emphasized, knowing Cabe would catch her insult towards the team’s former boss. “If you didn’t want to be placed as Centipede’s handler, then why did you accept your new position? You could have said no. You could have stayed with Scorpion.”

Cabe couldn’t believe it. Did they _not know_ what they did to Walter’s company?! Wanting to shout, he composed himself and swallowed his anger. “And I would have, if given the choice. But, as you should know, Scorpion lost all of its funds, and a company of two with no assets and no clients couldn’t function anymore. For the last month, most of my employment was voluntary because the company didn’t have any revenue.”

“Oh, well,” Paige pressed her lips together tightly, “that’s too bad.” 

“Damn right it is,” Cabe was starting to grow impatient. He began tapping his fingers on the table as Paige reached to pick up her cup of water. He couldn’t help himself any longer. “Do you feel proud of yourself?”

“Ex-Excuse me?” Paige was taken aback.

“You heard me,” Cabe was now seething and smacked his hand against the table, hard. “Do you feel proud that you destroyed a good business started by a decent man because of some stupid, unfounded jealousy?!” Paige opened her mouth but immediately closed it, Cabe not giving her a chance to speak. “I mean, I understand you have insecurities about the men in your life, but has Walter, once, shown you any reason to doubt him?”

Paige rose to her feet. “First of all,” she gritted her teeth angrily, “Centipede didn’t destroy Scorpion. Scorpion destroyed Scorpion. Second, you have no right to bring up my insecurities! Walter lied to me and took that… that _blonde_ to that stupid conference instead!”

“YOU TOLD HIM TO LIE, DAMMIT! He was sparing your feelings because you told him giving white lies were better than hearing the truth, well, I’ve got news for you, Paige. Lies are lies, it doesn’t matter what category you place them in. If you want Walter to learn how to be completely honest with you, then you should have taught him honesty instead. So yeah, it _is_ your fault for most of this mess. After working for Scorpion for three, almost four years, you should have known that teaching Walter to give little white lies would have blown up in your face. And it did, big time, but you know what? You never gave Walter a chance to explain himself to you. You just kept assuming he had this stupid cranial affair with Florence when the only woman would ever love was the one who might as well have smacked him in the face for all of the ugly words she said to him.” Cabe was now pacing the floor behind the meeting table. “And another thing, the reason I didn’t stay with Walter for whatever was left of Scorpion at the time was because he told me to come here; he gave me his blessing because, in spite of all of the shitty stuff everyone said or did to him, he still cares deeply about all of you even though he wouldn’t say it. I could see it in his eyes, and I’m telling you, that man had the eyes of someone who lost everything. He might be putting on a brave face in public, but I don’t think he’ll ever trust a single soul again, no thanks to you.”

Cabe breathed heavily and when Paige didn’t say anything, he started to turn and walk away. But then, “Well, it can’t be all that bad now,” she responded with bitterness. “After all, he still has Florence.”

“Hah!” Cabe wanted to laugh in her face so badly. “That woman hardly gave him a month before trying to ask him out, and he flat out refused, telling her he wasn’t interested in the least bit. So she moved out and left, now works for Elia somewhere with no intention to return. But what does Walter care? She only brought him hardship, much like someone else I know.” Cabe snapped.

Paige felt her heart swell. “F-Florence is gone?”

“Why do you care? You hate Walter’s guts from the way I see it. I’ve never seen a man more broken.” Cabe began to leave for the door, believing he’d overstayed his welcome. “I don’t know which was worse: the way you dumped and embarrassed him in front of everyone, or how you destroyed his career. But for Walter’s sake, I hope the two of you never cross paths again. Tell me, when you told Walter he was the love of your life… that you would forgive him for whatever he did as long as he stayed alive, did you mean any of it?”

“Of course, I did!” Paige exclaimed with bleary eyes. “Of course, I meant it! But like I said that night, he didn’t tell me a single damn thing! I had to find out myself!”  

“So now you know how he felt when you held that huge secret about space from him,” Cabe answered unnervingly calm. Paige was as quiet as a mouse, unsure how to combat him with her words. Cabe inhaled deeply and frowned. “During your years on Scorpion,” he continued quietly, “I cannot argue that you didn’t help Walter discover his heart and learn to love, but somehow, along the way, you seemed to have lost yours.

Paige was absolutely speechless. Appalled and completely shocked with some of the cruel things she heard from Cabe’s mouth. Did he really think of her that way? She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came. As if reading her mind, Toby walked into the office and said, “I couldn’t help but overhear everything you two were bickering about…. What did you mean our company destroyed Walter’s? It’s not our fault he didn’t recruit more people to help him with the workload.”

Cabe inhaled deeply, his anger already well spent. “The reason Walter didn’t hire anybody else was that he couldn’t. He didn’t have any funds to hire more people. Centipede stole everything from him, and because of that, he ended up losing far more than what he bargained for.”

“You keep saying Centipede stole from him, but we haven’t stolen any of his company funds. We make our own doe,” Toby replied with a frown. “We’re not stupid enough to syphon from Scorpion’s funds.”

“No. You didn’t steal from his funds; what you did was much worse and more damaging.” Cabe placed his hand on the door.

“Which was…?” Toby cocked an eyebrow, waiting for Cabe to spill the beans.

“His whole damn world.”

* * *

 

**WriterFreak001: This chapter was going to be longer,**

**but I thought this would be a perfect place to stop for now.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the reviews! They mean a lot to me. :)
> 
> For those who think Paige is way to OOC for this story, I’m portraying her that way purposely because, on the show, she has kind of gone OOC once she met Tim. In the final episode of season 4, the way Paige walked towards Walter to tell him they already got the gig he was referring to just SCREAMED arrogance, and that’s why she seemed a bit ‘bitchy’ in the last chapter of this story.
> 
> Things WILL get better, I promise.
> 
> Last little note: Because I want to make the Irish accents easier to understand, there will only be light tweaking to the text so that people aren’t scratching their heads, wondering what Sean or Louise are saying. Heh.

 

> _“Relationships are messy. It’s their nature._ **―** **Paige** **Dineen (2x24)**
> 
>  

* * *

* * *

** Fading **

** **

** Chapter Three **

**~ S** **CORPION ~**

** LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA **

By the time Paige’s appointment came, she decided to go alone instead of bringing Toby as promised, not really wanting any company at the moment. She even decided to use Uber because she didn’t even feel like driving herself. What Cabe had said… it tore her up, inside and out. She knew she’s been bitchy lately, and she knew she shouldn’t have acted the way she did when she spoke to him earlier, but to be honest? Being Team Leader of Centipede was draining her energy, and if she wasn’t working, she was taking care of a silent thirteen-year-old who made it clear she was the bad guy in this situation.

When Ralph found out that she started Centipede and said Walter wasn’t apart of their lives anymore, the son flipped out, demanding to know what happened. Of course, being only thirteen, he would say something like, “If Walter said nothing happened, then nothing happened!” before walking away and giving her the silent treatment from then on afterwards. In the last three months, he might have only spoken to her when it was necessary and then would retreat to his room for the rest of the day, not wanting anything to do with her.

Not only was she apparently Worst Girlfriend of the Year, but she was also, according to Ralph, the Worst Mother of the Year. In spite of knowing some of her insecurities, Ralph still wouldn’t listen to her side of the issue. At this point, she had given up even trying to explain everything to him. No matter what she said, he would always take Walter’s side on this one.  

It was a lost cause.

But… even if Walter was telling the truth and that his little outing with Florence didn’t mean anything, he still lied. If the outing with Florence didn’t mean anything, then he should have had no problem telling her the truth, right? Right?!

And yet, it was her fault he lied in the first place. Cabe was right. White lies are still lies, and she was the one who initially encouraged Walter to white lie to spare someone’s feelings in the first place… But maybe in her mind, she saw herself as the exception to the rule. Or, perhaps she didn’t make her ‘white lie’ lesson very clear for him… Paige covered her face and groaned loudly, forgetting she was sitting in a waiting room among other patients.

Deciding not to lift her head, she kept her eyes buried into her hands as she prayed for the ground to open up beneath her and swallow her into oblivion.

Between the frustration from her new lease on life, her family drama with Ralph and her resentment towards Walter for lying to her, she couldn’t decide which scenario exhausted her more. And with her resentment also came constant conflicting feelings of love, sadness and anger.

She still loved Walter O’Brien; there was no doubt about it, and she didn’t think she would ever love anybody more. Maybe never love again. But she just couldn’t deal with someone who wasn’t completely devoted to her. Everyone she ever loved, loved something else more than her. Was she wrong to be selfish? Was she wrong to want something she never really had?

Cabe and Ralph seemed to think so.

After the first week of quitting and breaking up with Walter, she had come to realize how awful she was towards him. In retrospect, thinking about the things she had said to him made her heart hurt because of how ugly she was towards him. As painful as it was to think that Walter felt something for another woman, he didn’t deserve that public onslaught of hatred, bred from her insecurities. And yet, no matter how much she wanted, she couldn’t bring herself to apologize. At least not yet.

After having the afternoon to think about Cabe’s accusations, she had to agree, he was mostly right on almost all accounts.

She _was_ wrong for dealing her issues with Walter in front of everyone and embarrassing him like that.  She was wrong for not letting him explain himself and for slamming his own insecurities across his face as if doing all of that would have made her feel better about herself – it didn’t.

But despite how awful she was, she _was_ entitled to her insecurities. She was entitled to feel the way she felt and share the way she felt, but she didn’t have to deliver her feelings in the way that she did. She could have waited until everybody left before confronting him… she could have taken a deep breath and remembered she was the love of Walter’s life… Remind herself that he wouldn’t do something like that to her…

Yet, despite how she handled things, despite how she reacted, Walter was no saint in comparison. Maybe she should have been better at communicating her insecurities with him before becoming more serious, and maybe in doing that, it could have prevented the meltdown she experienced when she found those goddamn tickets in his souvenir book, but there was no way in knowing how things could have ended differently. There was no way in knowing that if Walter had had a better idea of how insecure she felt about being abandoned for something or someone better, then he wouldn’t have asked _her_ to attend the lecture with him?

 _But then again_ , he did, and he overheard her telling Ralph she didn’t want to go…

Maybe she _was_ being ridiculous about this whole thing. Maybe she didn’t give Walter a fair chance to explain things. Maybe she should have given him the benefit of the doubt because of how much she loves him.

Paige wanted to scream. Everything was such a hot mess! A huge, hot, fucking mess!

“Paige?” a nurse called out, suddenly shaking the woman out of her exhausting thoughts. She rose to her feet, and the nurse with dark, riotous hair smiled as she started walking down the hallway. “Right this way.”

* * *

 

** Callan, Ireland **

It was evening by the time Walter arrived at his old home in Ireland. When he and Megan left for the United States, he had planned only to return and visit family occasionally upon Megan’s request, but he never quite imagined ever returning with the intention of staying… He had stopped calling Ireland home a long time ago, but… his parents were all he had left; he really didn’t see any other choice.

His father was right. Scorpion was a failure.

The moment he had made the decision, Walter was dreading his first encounter with his parents, but he knew it was inevitable. At least this wasn’t going to be a surprise visit. He could see it now, his father laughing at him for being such a fool for believing in a pipe dream. And this time, for once he wouldn’t argue. Walter _was_ a fool; a fool for believing a Cyclone never separated, a fool for believing Paige could love him for who he was, a fool for believing in love. But if everyone was happy without him in their lives, then so be it. As long as they were happy, that’s all he cared about.

Walter visibly cringed as he strolled towards the front door of his old home, the vines still climbing in all the right places. The house was the same color, same size and shape, no additions or renovations detected, and the farm was still intact.

At least some things never change.

As quietly as possible, he placed his remaining luggage down on the porch and hesitated slightly before ringing the doorbell. With his hands in his pockets, Walter pursed his lips tightly as he waited for the door to swing open. And damn, did it swing open. He didn’t have time to prepare himself when his mother leapt from the doorjamb and threw her arms around him, holding him tightly to her tiny form. He nearly fell forward as she dropped down to the ground, bringing his head and shoulders with her. “My son! I'm so glad yer home!”

When she released him, he gave her a small, fake smile and nodded slightly. “And my things? Did you and Dad receive them?”

Louise smiled affectionately. “Aye, we did. Yer belongin’s are takin' lodge in de barn. Yer da wants yer t’store what yer not gonna be usin’ in a storage facility downtown. De animals,” she laughed a little, “aren’t takin' kindly ter their new, silent neighbors.”

“Don’t worry; I’ll sort through my things tomorrow and only keep what’s necessary. I, uh,” he briefly remembered a lesson from Paige on gratitude and inhaled deeply. As much as he hated remembering, he didn’t want to revert to the man he was before meeting Paige. Even though she wasn’t in his life anymore, he was going to try is damnedest to continue improving to spite her observation of his EQ growth. Starting today, he was going to apply himself at trying to be a better person to prove to himself that he didn’t need Paige. “Thank you…”

Louise touched her son’s shoulder and then gently caressed his cheek. A single tear threatening to spill from her left eye. “Yer welcome m’boy.” She caught a glimpse of sadness and exhaustion in her son’s eyes but decided not to question it, leaving that discussion for another day. “Now, let’s get yer bags to yer old room.” She started to pick up one of them, but he placed his hand on top of hers to stop her.

“No need. I can get it.” He bent down and picked up his luggage before following his mother into the house and up the stairs. She held his door open while he walked through and placed his bags on his bed, a larger size, he noticed. “Tomorrow, once I’m settled, I’ll go to Kilkenny and see if I can find a job. I’ll move out as soon as I have enough income to sustain myself so you and Da shouldn’t need to worry about me becoming a burden. I promise I’ll stay out of the way when warranted and help around the house when needed.”

“Walter,” Louise laughed sweetly as she took her son’s hand in hers, “yer no burden, m’boy. Yer welcome t’live with us fer as long as yer needin’ t’get back on yer feet. And I’ll speak t’yer father and ask him not t’give yeh any grief.”

“That’s not necessary,” Walter said rather quickly but then remembered another lesson from the past and smiled softly. “But appreciated. Thanks, Mom.”

Louise matched her son’s smile and said, “I’ll leave yeh alone with yer things. Call if y’need anythin’.”

“Will do,” Walter nodded as his mother left his room and headed for the stairwell. Walter closed his door and locked it, not wanting any sort of interruption while he was alone.

He walked over to the window and watched the vast farm grass sway in the wind for miles. Not a single skyscraper in sight. He spotted a flower isolated from the others and sighed as his eyes slowly moved towards the cloudy sky and whispered, “This is for the best.”

And then he fell to his knees and wept.

* * *

 

** Los Angeles, California **

Cabe was surprised when he received a call from Paige, asking him to pick her up from the hospital. He thought he would be the _last_ person she would want to see right now, but as he pulled up to the curb of the sidewalk in front of the building, he could see how distressed she was and instantly didn’t care about the crud he’d felt for the past few months. Cabe popped open his car door and circled around his SUV to open the door for her. She slipped in silently, and he didn’t bother to ask what was troubling her as he closed the door.

Once they were on the highway, Cabe finally spoke, concerned for the former liaison. “Everything okay, kid?”

Paige remained silent.

Cabe cocked an eyebrow. “Paige?”

“Huh? What?” Paige suddenly shook out of her thoughts and glanced towards the man in the driver’s seat, “Did you say something?”

“I asked you if everything was okay. You’re quieter than usual and are avoiding confrontation. You only do that when you’re upset about something.” Cabe replied, keeping his eyes on the road. Before she spoke, he suddenly realized he needed to say something first. “Before you say anything… I want to apologize about this morning…,” he frowned deeply, “I’m sorry for blowing up like that. I felt like I’m being tugged in two directions, and the stress was finally getting to me. I shouldn’t have taken it out on you and Toby. The things I said? They were out of line.”

Paige didn’t say anything for a few minutes but eventually said, “I appreciate your apology, but… you were right on most accounts. I _was_ being a jerk towards you, and I was an ass for saying some of the things I said about Walter; I was just… angry and confused and hurt after everything that had happened between us, and I took my feelings out on you because… I guess I was jealous,” Paige bit her lip, “you have almost always been a constant in Walter’s life, and I wish he could have given me the same sort of devotion he always gave you. It was petty for me to be rude to you every morning since your transfer. I’m really sorry, Cabe. Can you forgive me?”

“Yes, but on one condition.” Cabe replied, taking a left turn.

Paige frowned slowly. “What condition?”

Cabe inhaled a deep breath. “You need to also forgive Walter.” Paige exhaled audibly, but Cabe cut her off. “I know you’re angry with him, and you have every right to be. I love the kid to death, but he can sometimes be a colossal idiot. That being said…, when it comes to EQ, essentially, Walter _is_ an idiot. He’s bound to do stupid things when certain decisions involve emotions, but you know that already. And I know, even if it was a meaningless thing on his part, lying about what happened really hurt you, and I was insensitive this morning for excusing your insecurities like a sack of potatoes. I apologize for that.” He paused when he noticed how torn up she was about everything. There were tears in her eyes, she was avoiding direct eye contact, and he could tell she was about to fall apart. He gently placed a hand on her knee to comfort her.

“Kid, what you said a few minutes ago… you were wrong about one thing.” Paige turned towards him a little. “I haven’t always been a constant in Walter’s life. Like the two of you, because I lost his trust, we had a major falling out and didn’t speak for years. When Walter hurts, like you, he tends to cut off all ties even if he cares deeply for the person who hurt him. Think back to when he learned the truth about his Baghdad project, he fired me off the team, and the same thing happened to you when he found out about what happened in space. You two might be different in a lot of things, but there are more things in common between you and Walter that you might not have realize. You both experienced difficult lives growing up. You have emotional scars from unfortunate events in your lives, but the most important similarity is that you two love each other very much. I could see it in his eyes when he asked me to watch over you and Ralph, and I can tell you’ve been very distressed for weeks, eyes puffy from crying, I assume?”

Cabe paused, but Paige had no reply. He really _could_ read her like a book.

“Sweetheart,” Cabe inhaled quietly, “I hate seeing both of you hurting, and while I’m not going to force you to go to him or him to come to you, I think the two of you need to talk things through and sort everything out privately. The emotional damage this whole mess is causing you is affecting your performance on Centipede, and I’m sure it’s the same for Walter, whatever in the world he’s doing right now.”

Paige closed her eyes and blinked back her tears. “I need to see Walter,” she muttered quietly, “There’s something he needs to know…”

Cabe pulled to a stop at a stoplight and took a moment to glance towards her, noticing her hand mindlessly resting against her lower belly. She caught him staring, and she instantly recoiled her hand and looked away, embarrassed.

“Hey,” Cabe touched her shoulder reassuringly before placing his hand back onto the wheel to turn left. “It’s going to be okay. The two of you will figure things out.”

Finally, the tears fell. “We… we never discussed having kids… W-What if he doesn’t want to be involved? I mean, I won’t force him to stick around twenty-four/seven, but I don’t want… I don’t want to raise this child alone.”

“And you won’t.” Cabe took her hand in his and squeezed it gently but didn’t let go. “Walter, no matter what’s happened in the past, will want to be involved; he is the most dutiful person I know.”

“But I don’t want him to stay out of duty, Cabe!” Paige exclaimed, her heart beating hard against her chest. “I want him to stay because he _wants_ to stay!”

Without another word, Cabe whipped the car around and started heading towards the garage. “Then tell him.”  

The moment Cabe parked the car in the alley next to the garage, Paige tore herself out of the SUV and ignored all of the construction cars parked out front as she raced towards the front door. Cabe, however, spotted them instantly and frowned. Just what was that kid doing? He stood behind Paige as she incessantly knocked on the door, but when the door swung open, it wasn’t Walter on the other side.

“What do you want, lady?” The man asked rudely. “I’m in the middle of a reno schedule, and I can’t afford to fall behind.” He gave Paige a onceover and smirked. “If you want an audition to be one of our exotic dancers, come back in two weeks when we’re hiring. But no need to worry, toots. With a bod like that, you’ll get the job right away. Just wear something much more revealing.” He started to close the door, but Cabe reached his hand out and blocked it from shutting.

Cabe shoved his hand into his pocket and pulled out his badge. “Say something like that again in front of my _daughter_ , and I’ll have you locked up for sexual harassment.” The man suddenly blanched, causing Cabe to grin. “Now,” Cabe’s hand swept passed his sidearm as he crossed his arms, making the businessman gulp audibly. “Where’s Walter O’Brien, the owner of this facility?”

“Gone,” the man replied instantly. “Sold the joint to my brother this morning.”

Before he continued, another man in a suit moved past the other one and said, “I apologize for my brother’s rude behavior. He has a sick sense of humor, and I want you to know that we are _not_ using this establishment for exotic dancers. It’s going to be a new restaurant once the building is finished with its renovations.” He paused, “Pardon me, where are my manners? I’m Robert Russell. By any chance, are you Ralph and Paige?”

Paige suddenly spoke up. “I-I’m Paige… Ralph’s my son.”

“The kind gentleman who sold me this building this morning asked me to give these letters to you,” Robert replied, presenting two envelopes. “I’m so glad you came; otherwise, I wouldn’t have had much luck finding you otherwise.”

“And did Walter say where he was going?” Paige’s throat was dry, and her head began to spin.

“He did not, unfortunately,” Robert frowned. “But he was rather in a hurry to leave if that helps.”

“It does,” Cabe nodded, extending his hand to shake Robert’s. “Thank you for your help.”

“You’re most welcome,” Robert smiled, shaking Cabe’s palm. He then gave Paige a sadder one. “I hope you find him; he seems important to you, and you, him.”

Paige’s hand found her belly again, and she whispered, “I hope so too.”

But as soon as the door closed behind Robert, Paige clutched her chest tightly, her heart in agony and her head spinning out of control. “Oh God, Oh God, Oh God!” she covered her mouth and darted for the garbage bin in the alley. Without warning, she violently retched into the can, and Cabe ran up to her to catch her hair.

“Just breathe, Paige. Just breathe.” Cabe muttered, trying to calm her down. When the retching stopped, the agent released her hair, and she immediately dropped to the ground, trying to gain control of her breathing, but all she could think about was that Walter was gone, and she was pregnant with his child. She instantly clutched Cabe’s jacket and leaned into him as he enveloped his arms around her. “Shhh, it’s going to be okay, kid.” He ran his fingers soothingly through her hair. “It’s going to be okay; I promise. I’ll find O’Brien, don’t you worry about a thing.”

And once he did find Walter, he was going to give him a good kick in the gooty for skipping town without telling anyone. He just hoped one of those letters would help be able to help him.

**~ SCORPION ~**

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! This chapter about doubled after editing it!
> 
> If Paige’s inner monologue seemed confusing or repetitive, I wrote it that way on purpose, because when I’m upset over something, my mind tends to rapid fire all of my thoughts, and sometimes, my thoughts overlap and then resurface again and again until the issue is resolved. I imagined Paige’s thoughts would be similar in that way.
> 
> Please let me know what you think! Thanks for waiting!


	4. Chapter 4

**I apologize for not updating this sooner. Between working, looking for an apartment, looking for a new job, visiting my grandfather while he was in the hospital (he’s okay now!!), I didn’t have much time to sit down and write! I’m hoping to be better at updating, but every time I try to update, I tend to fall asleep. Oops.**

* * *

 

> _“The regret of my life is that I have not said ‘I love you’ often enough._ **―** Yoko Ono
> 
> * * *
> 
>  

** Fading **

** Chapter Four **

**~ S** **CORPION ~**

****

**Los Angeles, California**

“Do you want me to stay until Ralph gets home from school?”

Paige shook her head and inhaled deeply before exhaling. “No, I’ll be all right. It’s just a few hours until the bus drops him off. Besides, I have a lot of thinking to do, and it would be best if I was alone for a while.” Paige did her best to force a smile, but it didn’t convince Cabe one iota. But he didn’t argue, and Paige was grateful.

“If you need something, _anything_ , let me know.” Cabe gently placed his hand on her shoulder. “In the meantime, I’ll see what I can find out about Walter’s whereabouts. I plan on stopping by the Centipede office to let everyone know they have a day off… What do you want me to say to the others in case they ask where you are?”

Paige pursed her lips together and exhaled audibly. “Just tell them I had a headache and went home after my appointment to sleep it off.”

Cabe nodded slowly as he pulled her in for a light hug. “Everything’s going to be okay, kid. Whatever you decide, it’ll be okay.”

Paige closed her eyes and bit her lip before blinking back her tears. When he released her, she took a step back and tried for another smile, her eyes beginning to leak with fresh tears. “I know, Cabe,” her voice broke a little, “and remember, I don’t want the others knowing yet. Not until I figure out what I’m going to do.”

“Scout’s honor,” Cabe smiled a little, mock-saluting her.

Paige curled a strand of her loose hair behind her ear as the wind swished her locks across her face and turned towards her condo complex. Without another word, she slowly walked away from Cabe’s SUV and slipped inside the building before he took off towards the office. She dragged her feet towards the elevator and mindlessly found herself in front of her apartment a few moments later. Once inside, she gently closed the door and locked it before hovering over to the couch in the living area. She dropped into the soft cushions and covered her face, sighing deeply into her hands.

What was she going to do?

If Cabe finds him, should she contact him? Let him know he knocked her up? Should she keep it to herself? Raise the child on her own as she did Ralph and never tell him?

No matter how many questions ran through Paige’s mind, she already knew her answer. How could she _not_ tell him? Even if… even if they couldn’t make things work somehow, it wouldn’t be right to keep the pregnancy from him. He at least deserved to know, and if he decided not to be involved in their child’s life, then that would be that, and she would have to do the single mother dance all over again.

At least she wouldn’t have to raise this child alone this time. Toby, Happy, Sly, Cabe and Allie would surely help, wouldn’t they?

Paige, for a moment, wondered what would happen if she decided not to tell Walter. Everything would run smoothly if he never found out, but if he did and _had_ wanted to be involved had he known, he would never forgive her, and she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself for hurting him again.

Exhaling softly, she reached into her pocket and pulled out the letters Walter had written to Ralph and her. She placed Ralph’s off to the side onto the cushion next to her and carefully opened hers, slowly slipping out the folded letter within. Flipping the letter open one flap at a time, she leaned her back into the couch and closed her eyes for a moment before adjusting them to the chicken scratch scribbled on the creased paper in her hands. Others might not be able to read it, but she knew his penmanship very well and could read his writing with ease, down to the very last letter.

Her fingers touched the dried ink and inhaled deeply before reading what might be the last words he would ever write to her.

> **_Paige._ **
> 
> **_I tried to be angry with you for everything that transpired since you left, but no matter how much damage you caused, no matter how much you broke my heart and stole everything from me, my anger never sustained. In fact, the last time we saw each other, it dissipated because, if you want honesty, I missed you and still loved you._ **
> 
> **_I apologize for the misconception regarding Florence; it was not my intention for you to perceive it the wrong way, and you’re right. I should have been more forthcoming rather than hiding the truth, and because I withheld it, I hurt you, and I hate myself for it._ **
> 
> **_I also apologize for not trying hard enough. You’re right. I disregarded your interests multiple times without hesitation or much consideration, and I’m sorry for the ways I treated you at times. I should have been more of a boyfriend to you and should have tried being more romantic, I should have done a lot of things I didn’t do when we were together, and for that, I’m sorry._ **
> 
> **_I could apologize to you a hundred times over, but it wouldn’t matter, would it? Whether it was then or someday in the future, if we were to ever be together again, the result would end up being the same… so why bother fixing what’s already been broken?_ **
> 
> **_When I finally came to that realization, I decided there was no reason for me to stick around so I left. You started a successful company and can give Ralph everything and more without my involvement. You no longer need me to translate him as you have Happy, Sylvester and Toby to aid you. I have asked Elia to assist Centipede if needed since Scorpion no longer exists. He’s a good person, and he promises to look out for your company._ **
> 
> **_I hope you are faring well, and I promise to continue improving my emotional quotient. You can rest assure in knowing you won’t be bothered by me again._ **
> 
> **_Have a good life,_ **
> 
> **_Walter_ **

Paige’s emotions were all over the place. Her eyes were red with tears flowing down her face, her nose was runny and her broken heart nearly shattered. She tossed the letter aside and curled into a ball before leaning most of her weight against the couch cushions. She didn’t know how long she sat there, wailing her heart out, wishing the last several months had ended differently. If only she wasn’t so insecure, Walter would still be in her life, and they could have raised their unborn child together.

But…

He’s gone now, without a trace, and she had nobody to blame but herself.

Eventually, when there were no more tears left to shed, she sat up and pulled her knees to her chest, her eyes zoning in on the letter. She inhaled deeply to calm herself, reminding herself that she needed to stay strong for Ralph… and the baby. If she was destined to live the rest of her life as a single parent, then so be it. But first thing’s first: she needed to find Walter. If anything, he deserved to know, but she wasn’t going to force him into raising their child with her, and she shouldn’t expect him to want to be involved. Especially after the terrible things she had said to him.

She found herself neatly folding the letter and slipping it back into its envelope before picking up Ralph’s. Finding the strength to stand, she floated towards her son’s bedroom and placed Walter’s note on top of his pillow before heading towards the kitchen to make herself some much-needed coffee.

As she hovered over to the counter, she felt her phone buzzing in her back pocket. With nearly inhuman speed, she whipped her cell out in case it was Walter but frowned when she noticed it wasn’t. She answered anyway.

“Cabe?”

There was a short moment of silence before the man on the other line answered. _“Are you sitting down?”_

“Should I be?” Paige swallowed thickly, unsure she could handle any more bad news.

_“Let me know when you’re sitting down.”_

Paige could feel her heart racing with fear and anxiety as she rushed over to the couch and plopped herself down. Placing the phone to her ear, she exhaled deeply. “Cabe, what’s going on? Is Walter… is he okay?”

_“We haven’t found him yet, but we’re still looking.” He answered slowly._

Paige closed her eyes and felt her throat tighten. “Cabe,” her voice was now thick with worry, “What’s going on?”

Again, silence.

“Dammit, Cabe! I’m not going to ask again!” Paige shouted into the phone. She combed her fingers through her hair. “Out with it already!”

_“Ralph’s missing. He never showed up at school today.”_

* * *

 

** Callan, Ireland **

It was about 2 a.m. when Walter glanced out the window, frowning as he spotted the storm clouds rolling in. He lightly touched the faded scars on his lips as the thunder clashed, reminding him of an unfavorable memory.

Because his father ended up breaking his foot due to a farming injury when Walter was eleven, he had to take on a lot of the chores for several weeks. Among one of those nights was a nasty storm much like this one, and Walter had tie down the windows in the barn to keep the animals dry. The last window was above the loft, and once it was secure, he started his way back down the ladder.

Of course, with his luck, when he was still about five feet away from the ground, the ground shook hard after a roll of thunder roared in the skies above and sent the ladder flying away from the loft, hurling him downwards. He ended up breaking his nose and scarring his face that night.

After that incident, his mother hired a second hand to help with the chores and would only let Walter work on the smaller things like feeding the animals to avoid further injury. By the time his nose healed, his father was able to return to working on the farm, and Walter was _mostly_ relieved of his duties.

Never did he think he would be back home indefinitely after leaving for the United States. He chuckled humorlessly to himself. So much for becoming a U.S. citizen. That was such a wasted endeavor.

Walter walked over to the kitchen counter and poured more coffee into his mug before making his way over towards his makeshift desk on the kitchen table. He opened up his laptop to check the radar when he heard a soft knocking on the front door. To avoid waking up his parents, he quietly walked towards the source of the noise and slowly opened the door, cringing only slightly as it creaked. When he glanced down at his visitor, he froze in place as the oh so familiar face stared up at him, tired but smiling. _Ralph._

“Thank goodness. I found you.” was all the boy could say before fainting from exhaustion.

**…**

Walter could have called Paige the moment he tucked Ralph in to his bed, but he didn’t deny the small sense of satisfaction that Ralph preferred to be with him than his mother. Still, after three long hours of contemplation, he finally deserved to know where her son was, and it wasn’t fair for him to make her heart ache any longer than necessary.

Though he dreaded calling her and no longer had her phone number saved in his contact list, he still had it memorized. Before initiating the call, he checked his watched, realizing Ralph should have gotten out of school about an hour ago back in LA. She more than likely knew her son was missing by now.

After noticing that the storm was no longer around, he stepped outside and sat down on the cold, wet cement steps leading to the pathway in front of the house. Without much more delay, he pressed the TALK button.

* * *

** Los Angeles, California **

Paige couldn’t help but pace the floor as Cabe spoke on the phone with one of his coworkers. Toby and Happy came right over the moment they heard Ralph was missing and tried to offer Paige any sort of comfort, but she didn’t want it. All she wanted was for her son to be home, safe in her arms.

At first, she thought Mark Collins had kidnapped him, but Toby reassured her that he wouldn’t go out of his way to kidnap a child who was infinitely smarter than him. At least not in broad daylight.

Her second thought was that he was abducted by aliens, but Happy was quick to squash that one.

Paige’s third theory involved the government swiping her kid off the street, but neither Happy nor Toby could debunk that one since it’s happened once before.

“Have you noticed Ralph behaving weirdly? I mean, more so than usual?” Toby asked as he touched Paige’s shoulder to console her. Paige shrugged him off and combed her fingers through her hair as she swallowed the vomit threatening to erupt.

Cabe then ended his phone call, and the expecting mother met his eyes with hope. “Well?”

Cabe didn’t smile. “Unfortunately, no one has seen or heard from him in the last day. If he went somewhere, he paid in cash or stowed away because there’s no record of credit card payment.”

Paige’s phone began to ring. “Oh! Maybe it’s Officer Bailey! Maybe he found him!” She didn’t hesitate to answer as she walked off for some privacy and exclaimed, “Did you find him, officer?!”

 _“Don’t worry,”_ Paige nearly dropped her phone. _“Ralph’s safe. He’s here with me.”_

Paige opened and closed her mouth in shock. She could have been angry at him, assuming he kidnapped her baby. She could have been upset for knocking her up and leaving without a goodbye. She could be a lot of things, but an eerie calmness overtook her at the realization that her son was all right. She closed her eyes. “Where is he? I’ll come and pick him up.”

There was a short silence and then a sigh. _“That might be rather difficult.”_ She was about to yell at him, but he continued. _“He’s back home with me.”_

“What’s the address? I don’t care how far you are; I’m picking up my son.” Paige said with a frown stretched across her lips. But then his words sank in. “Oh.”

_“Yeah… We’re in Ireland.”_

* * *

* * *

 

**YAY! ANOTHER CHAPTER DONE!**

**I apologize for this not being updated as soon as possible. One thing led to another, and while I intended to update it on Thursday, I ended up getting into a car wreck and didn’t have the energy to finish. I’m better now though. The car… not so much.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I know I say this every time, but life has been super hectic. Between various doctor appointments, my grandparents moving into assisted living (they’re 91 and 90), work, homework and more appointments, it’s been hard for me to find time to write. It’s raining now so I have finally found a moment of respite.**

**Disclaimer: I have some Irish dialect in this chapter. Please don’t socially murder me if I butcher the dialect. I apologize in advance. >_<**

* * *

 

> _“I’m fading away so slowly, and you aren’t even noticing.” – Unknown_

* * *

 

** Fading **

** Chapter Five **

**~ S** **CORPION ~**

****

** Callan, Ireland **

If Walter was being honest, he really wished he had waited until the next day to call Ralph’s mother. The boy was fine, in desperate need of rest, but otherwise fine. Ralph was sleeping peacefully in Walter’s bedroom when he went upstairs to check on him. While Paige had insisted on taking the soonest flight out of LA, he barely managed to convince her to wait until morning, reassuring her over and over again that Ralph was safe and unharmed. He could tell the boy was incredibly hungry by the gurgling sounds his stomach was making as he slept, but he decided to omit that piece of information for his and the mother’s sakes.

Paige had all but demanded for his new cell phone number, but he didn’t give it to her. He lied and said he hadn’t bought a new one yet and suggested she try calling Ralph’s phone once landed. He didn’t miss the emotionless laugh in response and almost questioned it, but reminded himself what happened the last time he really spoke to this woman and didn’t have the heart to ask. Though he would always care for her, much to his dismay, Paige was simply not a person he could invest his heart into again.

After the breakup, he counted and recalled all of the times she threatened to leave the moment something went wrong in their friendship / relationship. And as per usual, a stupid decision he made became the one time too many for her. He really couldn’t blame her for breaking up with him; he had been dishonest (though she _was_ the one who taught him the so-called benefits to white lies), but leaving Scorpion? Disbanding his team and stealing them to make her own company, and then compete with him?! The fact that she could be so shallow still bothered him immensely. Because of her, his whole dream had been destroyed in a blink of an eye. And because of him, he destroyed his relationship (and what might be the only relationship in his lifetime).

He really _was_ going to end up alone, wasn’t he? (At least he didn’t bring the ferret.)

Walter had been doing a lot of thinking these past few months, and though he didn’t realize it at the time, he and Paige were never really on the same wavelength for quite some time. It didn’t start with the lie, but with Florence. Ever since his stupid dream about Florence being his wife, everything in his relationship with Paige was strained. They had begun to pull apart even without him realizing it until it was too late.

Toby had said the dream meant nothing, and Walter surely believed him because he would never love another woman other than Paige. That, even to this day, was a certain fact. Albeit, Florence was an interesting person, but he never saw beyond the assets she offered to the team. Yes, it was a major mistake to invite her to that lecture because if he had known of her feelings for him, he would have _never_ knowingly encouraged it.

Especially since the end result was the most unfavorable outcome in the History of Walter O’Brien.

Walter sighed deeply and buried his head into his hands as he leaned forward in the chair he was sitting as Ralph slept soundly in the bed next to him. He really messed up, didn’t he?

And this time, there was no chance for redemption.

Once Paige arrived to pick up Ralph, he would most likely never see her again.

Perhaps it was for the best.

* * *

 

** Los Angeles, California **

Though Paige promised to leave for Ireland in the morning, she couldn’t sleep. Her baby was halfway across the world, practically untouchable, and all she could do was race about her apartment and grab everything she thought she would need. Though Walter didn’t know this, she didn’t plan for a brief visit. In fact, while she would punish Ralph later for flying out to Ireland without permission (and just where did he get the money, anyway?!), she was somewhat relieved he did. If Walter hadn’t called to tell her where her son was, she would still be racing about the Centipede HQ, ordering (yes, ordering) her geniuses to look through every nook and cranny in cyberspace to find that insufferable Irishman.

Cabe had called Homeland, and they were (surprisingly) very generous in offering her a private jet to take her to Callan, but she turned it down, knowing that Walter would automatically think something was wrong if Homeland was involved. However, she didn’t pass up the second offer of paying for her plane ticket. When she asked Cabe how he was able to convince Homeland to help her out, he had merely shrugged, saying something about needing to locate two important governmental assets. She couldn’t be more grateful.

And when morning came…, when she boarded the plane… when she looked out the window and spotted all of the feathery clouds hovering over the ocean…, when the plane landed…, and when she arrived to Walter’s childhood home, all she could think about was hugging her son to death (rebellion stage be damned) and the impending conversation she would have to have with the man who broke her heart and ran away.

She inhaled deeply as the wind blew her hair softly and clenched the handle of her luggage bag while the taxi driver unloaded the rest of the vehicle of her things. There, in flesh and blood, was her son and the father of her second child out in the field, building a massive telescope. Both of them were unaware of her arrival, laughing and smiling, and all she wanted to do was fade away as if she was never there.

It hurt too much seeing her son so happy with someone else. She knew his relationship with Walter was special, but after all of the cold shoulders and silent treatments she had to deal with over the last several months, she couldn’t help but be jealous and heartbroken all over again. Did Ralph really love Walter more than her? Was she no more than a constant disappointment in his eyes?

No! She wasn’t going to think like that! She wasn’t going to make up scenarios and feed off them like she did before. Eating the lies she created for herself destroyed her relationship with one person; it can’t with her son. It absolutely can’t.

And… for the child growing inside of her, she really couldn’t afford to be jealous over something that probably wasn’t even there. Things were different; it wasn’t going to be just Ralph and her anymore. She had to think about the future, not dwell in the past.

Paige blinked away her oncoming tears when they finally noticed her. She held her breath when their smiles suddenly faded, releasing it when the taxi driver asked her to pay the fare.

“You told her where I was?! Why?!” Ralph shouted for the whole neighborhood to hear as Paige’s finger jerked when she was signing the driver’s iPad. “I thought you were on my side!”

She kept herself busy as the taxi drove off and began collecting her other belongings as Walter tried to reason with her son. She stopped what she was doing and saw Walter leaning in front of the boy with his hands cupping her son’s shoulders. “Ralph, logically, you know I had no choice.”

“Yes, you did!” the boy exclaimed, his eyes wet with threatening tears, “Why would you want her here?!” He pointed a dejected finger towards his mother. “She destroyed your life!” He all but ripped himself away from Walter and began to back away from him. “Don’t you hate her?! I do!” He then turned towards her and with tight fists trembling at his side, he shouted, “You’re the worst mother, ever! Just go back home!” He began running away towards the forest surrounding the farmlands. “You’re not wanted!”

Paige suddenly found it hard to breath and instantly dropped the bag she was holding.

“Ralph!” Walter hollered at him, but the boy kept running faster and faster. Without even looking towards Paige, Walter hurried off towards Ralph, calling out his name.

The expecting mother inhaled deep breaths as her heart pounded hard against her chest. She tried beating her fist against her chest to calm her palpitations and took long, deep breaths to control her breathing. Though she barely managed to calm herself down, the exhaustion sent her to her knees, and without warning, she doubled over and retched all over the grass in front of her.

“Oh dear!” A familiar voice exclaimed from behind her, its owner immediately at her side. A warm, soothing arm stroked her back as her hair was lifted off from around her face as her stomach heaved again. “D’you need me t’call a doctor?”

Paige shook her head wearily towards Louise and weakly whispered, “It’ll pass. I just need a minute.”

And when a few minutes passed, Paige palpitations had calmed, her breathing was back to normal, and her stomach quelled, but she still felt like her heart had been ripped out of her chest. Louise helped her into the house as Sean brought her bags to the spare room across the hall from Walter’s bedroom. Louise insisted she rest and recuperate, but she couldn’t sleep. Silent tears fell from her eyes as she stared blankly at the ceiling, wondering if Ralph was right. Maybe… maybe coming to Ireland had been a mistake. Maybe she should just give Walter full custody of her oldest son, if that would make Ralph happy with her again.

She violently shook her head to erase her thoughts. What was she even thinking?! Give up Ralph? Give up on trying to make amends? Give up on the man who made her the happiest she’d ever been? Give up on giving her second child a chance to grow up with a brother, mother and father? On giving Ralph a chance to have a loving father? Give up on a second, scratch that, third chance on love? She didn’t come here to wallow in self-pity and fade into nothingness. She had to think about her children.

She absentmindedly placed her hand on her tummy and rubbed the small bump she had concealed. Coming to Ireland was a second chance to make things right; and heaven help her, that was exactly what she intended to do.

She survived too much to throw it all away.

Paige Dineen was going to freaking fix her damn happy ending if it was the last thing she’d ever do.

* * *

 

** Walter **

Walter couldn’t bare to see how broken Paige must have felt when Ralph shouted those ugly things towards her. Even if he was still spiteful of the woman, he would never wish for her only son to hate her and never want to see her again. Paige dedicated her whole life to give Ralph the best care possible when she could have tossed him away the moment she found out he was different. But she didn’t, and Walter knew that woman loved her son to death. Walter knew what it was like saying hateful words he didn’t mean, and he nearly destroyed a relationship because of it. He couldn’t let that happen to Ralph. Paige was too important in the boy’s life for him to give her up.

He found the younger genius sitting at the base of a large oak tree just inside the forest. Ralph started to get up, but sat back down when Walter said, “Don’t you even dare run away again.” He heaved in and out to catch his breath (he really wished he was in better shape!) before sitting down on top of the stump across from Ralph, giving the boy a respectable distance. “Why do you hate your mother?”

Ralph gave him a look of disbelief and challenged, “Why don’t _you_?”

Walter sighed and clasped his hands together. “To be honest, I asked myself that question for days after what happened. I tried hating your mother, I really did, Ralph.” Walter felt ashamed for saying those words, but the boy needed to hear the truth if it could help him understand Walter’s thoughts better. “I even tried forgetting her completely, but… your mother has been a strong influence in my life that, even without realizing it initially, almost everything I owned reminded of her. Forgetting her wasn’t an option so then I tried hating her. But…,” he sighed and rubbed his temples gently, “no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t. She was too special of a person to me for me to hate her. Did I dislike her? Oh, yes, immensely. For months, I couldn’t stand being in the same room as her whenever we had the same clients for business. But I could never hate her. Do you really hate your mom? After everything she’s done for you?”

Ralph thought for a moment, and then his shoulders slumped. “I guess not. But whenever I’m around her, I just get so angry! She’s the reason you left!”

Walter shook his head. “There’s enough fault to go around; we both made mistakes in our relationship, and I’m sorry that you got caught in the crossfire, but our disentanglement was not entirely her fault as much as it wasn’t mine. We’re both to blame, Ralph. Now, your mother loves you very much, and what you said hurt her feelings. If she had suddenly said the same words to you, would you have liked it?”

Ralph frowned and shook his head slowly, “I would feel hurt, too. It would be as if another person was willingly abandoning me like my dad did.” He then paused, looking more defeated than ever. “I messed up, didn’t I?”

“We all make mistakes, Ralph.” Walter said, walking up to him and then patting his head gently. “The important thing is that we learn.”

Ralph nodded, reflectively. He then looked up at Walter and bit his bottom lip, a shared habit between mother and son, Walter noticed. “Do you… still love her?”

Walter’s smile faded, and he answered honestly. “I don’t think I’ll ever stop.”

“Does it hurt? Loving her, I mean?” Ralph asked as Walter took a seat next to him.

The genius sighed loudly and nodded. “Sometimes, it does. It’s like… a feeling that’s always there, not always present, but there when I’m reminded of her. Maybe my feelings for her will fade with time, and maybe someday, it won’t hurt as much thinking about your mother, but right now? I’ve learned to live with it. I have to.”

Ralph nodded and frowned as he rose to his feet. Walter followed suit. Ralph was just about to ask him something else when he spoke instead. “For me, please give your mother some slack while you two are here. She’d been through a lot in her life, and you are her strong tower, so to speak. A lot of people have abandoned Paige in the past, much like you felt abandoned by your father. It would most likely destroy your mother if you left and abandoned her, too. You’ve been the only constant in her life for the past 14 years. She needs you more than ever.”

Ralph balked. “Even if I don’t agree with her on some things?”

“Even if,” Walter nodded, “because if you love her, your disagreements shouldn’t matter.”

Ralph frowned and dropped his eyes to the leafy ground. “If disagreements shouldn’t matter, then why did she leave you?”

Walter wasn’t prepared for that question, but he answered the only response he knew. “We were just too different, I guess.”

* * *

 

** Paige **

“How’re ye farin’, m’dear?” Louise asked Paige as she came in to check on her. “Gave me quite a scare out there,” she touched her heart as she sat down in the chair next to the bed Paige was lying in.

“I’m feeling better, thank you,” Paige gave her a weak smile and slowly sat up, needing to stretch her back and arms.

“And your womb? Anythin’ feelin’ amiss?” Louise brought a warm washcloth to Paige’s forehead and wiped away the young mother’s sweat.

Paige mindlessly brought her hand to her stomach. “How did you…”

“Know?” Louise couldn’t help but smile. “Oy, when I was pregnant with Walter, I experienced mornin’ sickness as if it was the plague itself! What a rough one he was. Me Megan was an easy babe, but Walter had a talent for makin’ me queasy beyond belief!” She paused for a moment, “Does Walter know?”

Paige shook her head. “I just found out the other day…. I don’t know if I’m going to tell him just yet…. I want to wait things out first… see if our relationship can be salvaged before letting him know….”

Louise slowly sighed. “He deserves to know ‘bout his own babe, but as a mother, I understand. Just don’t wait too long before makin’ your decision, dearie. Dishonesty is a nasty disease, I tell ye; be careful not to step on the wrong stone in the river, you knever know which one might sink.”

Paige rubbed her temples. “I will tell him… when the time is right. I don’t want him to think I only want us to be together for the child’s sake or that I want his money. I want to see if we can mend our relationship first before bringing up my pregnancy. I won’t expect him to help me raise this child. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking over the past several hours, and if he’s not interested after I tell him, then I’ll raise this child myself. I’ve raised Ralph all on my own for seven years; I can raise another.”

“Aye,” Louise nodded with a smile. “But I know me boy, and he won’t turn his back on his child. Trust me.”

But Paige didn’t know if she could, but she really hoped Louise was right.

Time would only tell.

* * *

* * *

**WriterFreak001: Yay! Another chapter completed! :) Let me know what you think! :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**I know it’s been a super while since I’ve updated, but I’ve been sick a lot these past couple of months and will be having surgery later this year. I’d appreciate it if those readers who sent not-so-nice PMs / anon reviews (yes, I can delete before they reach the public) take a step back and be patient.**

**Alongside my medical issues, I work three jobs, am taking a class, and am in the process of finding a new job. Unless for some reason I decide to discontinue any my stories, all of them at some point will be updated. Please don’t beg me to write new chapters asap, and then send me complaints when I don’t.**

**Okay, rant done. On to the story.**

* * *

 

> _“_ And maybe we're just like the sun and the moon - deeply in love with each other but too different to exist side by side. _” – Unknown_

* * *

 

** Fading **

** Chapter Six **

**~ S** **CORPION ~**

****

Walter and Ralph eventually made their way back to the farm an hour or so later, but neither saw Paige in sight. Ralph pursed his lips together, feeling a little guilty for what he had said to his mother earlier. “Do you think she actually left?”

“No,” Walter shook his head, giving Ralph a small, encouraging smile. “She’s your mother. She wouldn’t leave unless you were going back with her.”

“But I said all those terrible things…”

“Hey,” Walter touched Ralph’s shoulder gently as they saw his mother, Louise, walking down to greet them. “Trust me. Paige wouldn’t leave you behind. Ever.”

The young teen seemed to have found solace in Walter’s response and nodded slowly, but before he could say anything, Louise said, “Dinner’ll b’ready soon. Be sure t’wash up.”

As Ralph ran ahead and inside the house, Walter shoved his hands into his pocket, unsure how to ask the question that’s been on his mind since he didn’t see Paige outside.

Somehow, though, his mother knew exactly what he was thinking and grinned slowly. “She’s restin’ in Megan’s old room. I figured the boy would be stayin’ in yor room, but where’ll you stay? On the couch?”

Walter shook his head. “I’ll sleep in the loft… Are my things still there?”

Louise nodded. “I asked yor da not to touch the loft… that he could do whatever he wanted to the barn, as long as he left yor things alone.”

“Thanks.” Walter gave his mother a small nod and a light smile. “I don’t know how long they’ll be staying, but if overstay their welc—”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Louise laughed quietly, rolling her eyes dramatically. “We have the space; it’s no bother at all. Besides, yor bed is too small for yeh now; the loft will be more suitin’ for the time bein’.”

Walter grinned a little wider with gratitude. Before Louise could walk away, Walter tugged on her sleeve a little bit and quietly asked, “After I ran off to fetch Ralph, how did she seem?”

Louise’s smile faded a little. “The poor dear was a wreck, and I don’t blame her for reactin’ so. I overheard what her son said, and I’d be a broken soul too if I ever had to bear such cruel words from me own flesh ‘n blood.”

Walter nodded, expecting as much. “I spoke to Ralph; he was upset and hurt, and he lashed out because of it. He feels guilty for what he said, but I don’t think he’ll forgive her right away.”

“Have you forgiven her?” His mother cocked her brow, and he immediately recoiled.

 “No….” If he was being completely honest.

“Perhaps the boy takes after you more than you think,” Louise winked as she rubbed Walter’s left shoulder. “I have a feelin’ that if you and Paige forgive each other, then Ralph will learn to forgive his mother.”

“Maybe…,” was all Walter said as he absentmindedly kicked at the dirt. “Anyway,” Walter glanced towards the second floor of the O’Brien house and added, “I need to clean up. I’ll move my bedding to the loft after dinner.”

His mother replied with a simple nod and a smile as he walked away and disappeared inside the house. Walter raced up the stairs and slipped inside his old bedroom to grab a clean pair of clothes, but he was surprised to find out that Ralph wasn’t there. Curiously, he walked about the halls and ventured towards Megan’s room. He pressed his ear against the wooden door and overheard Paige and Ralph talking, but he moved away when he heard Ralph’s apology, not wanting to invade on their privacy.  

Since he had a little bit of time before dinner, after cleaning up, he began packing his things back into his suitcase so that he could haul it over to the barn later, but as he neatly placed his favorite tie into his bag, a soft creak sounded behind him. He pretended he didn’t hear it but paused when he heard Ralph’s quiet voice.

“A-Are you leaving again?”

Walter turned and smiled, touched that the boy cared for him so much.

“Of course not,” Walter chuckled as he zipped up his bag. Before the boy could ask any further questions, he said, “I’m taking my things to the barn… there’s a loft there with an extra bed. I used to use it as a private sanctum when I was younger when I wanted to escape the house.”

“Can I see it?” Ralph’s eyes lit up, eager to know what it looked like.

Walter reached over and patted the boy’s shoulder before nodding. “We can go over there after dinner, okay?”

Ralph nodded swiftly, beaming. “Knowing you, there’s probably a telescope and some great books up there, right?”

Walter smirked as he placed his bag on the floor and sat down on his bed. “You know me so well. When I was your age, I often studied the stars up there and wrote down all of my astronomical observations. After Megan got sick, I also used it as a place for research so that my parents wouldn’t know what I was doing.”

“Is that why you called the upstairs part of the garage ‘the loft?’ Because it reminded you of the one in your family’s barn?”

“Something like that,” Walter replied as Ralph took a seat next to him. The boy suddenly glanced at the floor as his fingers fidgeted in his lap. “Something wrong?”

Ralph was silent for a moment, but eventually, he said, “I spoke to my mom…”

“How did that go?”

“Better than I thought,” Ralph replied, glancing upward towards Walter. “She apologized for everything… for putting me in an awkward situation and for keeping me from seeing you… I didn’t actually think she would ever apologize… but since she did to me, maybe one day she’ll apologize to you.” Ralph offered Walter a small smile. “And if she did…, would you forgive her?”

Walter didn’t even have to think about his response. He only smiled and said, “In a heartbeat.” 

“… And if the two of you forgave each other, would that mean you two would date again?” Ralph asked with hopeful eyes, but Walter’s smile fell, and his shoulders dropped.

“I don’t know… A lot went wrong when we were together; I see that now… I didn’t pay attention to your mother as much as I should have… She would invite me to do things with her, things she really enjoyed, and I would sometimes turn her down because I didn’t want to disappoint her if I found what she liked boring. But in the end, not spending extra time with her, no matter what we were doing or where we were, ultimately hindered our relationship even though I thought I was protecting her. After these past few months of self-reflection, I realized that Paige’s outburst about Florence and me wasn’t completely unfounded…”

“What do you mean?” Ralph asked, fearful of the older genius’s answer.

“What I mean is… if I had chosen to go to that lecture alone… if I hadn’t invited Florence to the garage outside of casework to go over different theories… If I hadn’t neglected Paige when she invited me to go somewhere with her, then maybe we wouldn’t be where we are today… At first, I didn’t understand why Paige was upset about me going to see the lecture with Florence, because even though the evening was completely innocent in my point of view, but after thinking about all of the different variables Paige mentioned, I can understand why she reacted the way she did.” Walter frowned and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees.

“Ralph… I don’t want you to have false hopes… Your mom and I… we… while our friendship might recover, our relationship might not… Because of what your mom said,” Walter rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger, “she saw our relationship as an experiment… and maybe she was right. Maybe being together made us realize we’re just too different. If I’m being honest… the type of man Paige wants in her life obviously isn’t me… There’s a lot of things she wants in a relationship that I’m not qualified to fulfill on an emotional level. She made that pretty clear the night we broke up. She might be the love of my life, but… it’s pretty clear I’m not hers…”

Ralph lowered his head and glanced at the floor, dejected. “So… are you saying… there’s absolutely no chance you and my mom will be together again?”

Walter paused to think about his next response before answering him. “I’m not saying that it won’t ever happen, Ralph… but the likelihood is very low. Like I said earlier, your mother wants someone in her life that meets all her needs, and I don’t. We both thought we could work our differences out, prove Mark Collins wrong, but in the end, Mark was right… we’re very different people….”

Ralph slowly slid off the bed and nodded in defeat before making his way to the door. “Dinner will be ready soon. I’m going to wash up.”

He was out the door before Walter could make a reply, leaving the older genius alone, feeling like a fool.

* * *

Ralph slipped himself inside his mother’s interim bedroom door and sat down on the corner of the bed next to Paige’s feet as she woke up from the nap she apparently was taking. She slowly sat up in the bed, and Ralph scooted closer but didn’t say anything.

She leaned forward and reached out to touch his knee before muttering, “What is it, honey?”

Ralph cut straight to the chase. “Are we leaving back home tomorrow?”

Paige tensed for a moment and considered her answer carefully. She slowly smiled and took Ralph’s hand in hers as she squeezed it gently. “No.”

The young genius cocked an eyebrow, unconvinced. “But I thought you came here to pick me up and bring me back home…. Has the reason for your visit changed?”

Paige shook her head and decided Ralph had a right to know the truth. “I did come here for you, Ralphie, but… there are some things I need to tell Walter before we go home… and depending on how he reacts will determine when we’ll return.”

Ralph climbed onto the bed and laid down in front of her without breaking eye contact. “What sort of things?”

Paige grasped Ralph’s hand again and smoothed her thumb over his small knuckles. She leaned closer to him and quietly whispered, “Can you keep a secret?”

The boy nodded swiftly and vowed never to tell a soul.

Paige hesitated for a moment before relaying the truth. “While you snuck onto the plane yesterday when you should have been at school, I received a call from the doctor regarding my tick bite… and thankfully, I’m in the clear. No Lyme Disease.”

“But?” Ralph pursed his lips and cocked an eyebrow, waiting for his mother to share the actual secret.

“But they wanted to run some more tests as a follow-up so I went back to the doctor. They ran the tests, and all of them came back negative except for one.” Paige inhaled a deep breath, unsure how to phrase the big reveal to her young teen. “Ralph,” Paige gently squeezed his hand, “I’m pregnant…, and Walter is the father.”

The boy’s eyes grew wide, and a smile colored his lips. “Really?!”

“Shhh!” Paige covered Ralph’s mouth swiftly. “Keep it down! I don’t want anyone to know yet.”

Ralph nodded underneath her palm before she lift it. “When are you going to tell him?”

“I don’t know,” Paige shrugged and brought her knees to her chest before hugging them with her arms. “When the time’s right, I guess.”

“And when will that be?”

… “I’ll get back to you on that,” Paige laughed lightly, wrapping one arm around her son’s shoulders as he sat up. “But you must promise me, Ralphie, that you won’t tell a living soul. I will tell Walter when I’m ready…, but I’m not going to tell him just yet.”

“Why not?” Ralph asked, curious.

“Because if I told him he was going to be a father,” Paige lowered her voice, then he would more than likely return out of duty for being the child’s father…, and I don’t want that, Ralph. I want Walter to stay because he _wants_ to stay, but… a lot has happened so I don’t think he’ll want to stay…, and I won’t force him to. When the time’s right, I’ll tell him, and if he wants to walk away, I’ll let him go…, and I’ll raise this child,” she mindlessly placed her hand on her lower belly, “by myself.”

“You’re wrong.”

Paige lifted her eyebrows towards her son. “Hm?”

Ralph shrugged. “You said you would raise the baby alone if Walter doesn’t want to help… That’s not true. You have me,” the boy beamed widely. “I’ll help you every way I can.”

Paige blinked back the tears forming in her eyes and smiled as her nose burned. Quietly, she enveloped her son in her arms tightly and closed her eyes as one tear streamed down her cheek. “Thank you.”

And she didn’t let him go until Louise yelled for supper.

* * *

**WriterFreak001: This chapter was more Ralph-centric. Next chapter will focus more on Walter and Paige. Thanks for reading! Please review! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

> _“_ We’re all in the same game; just different levels. Dealing with the same hell; just different devils. _” – Unknown_

* * *

 

** Fading **

** Chapter Seven **

**~ S** **CORPION ~**

****

“This is your loft?” Ralph’s eyes were wide open after he and Walter climbed the stairs of the barn to view the older genius’s old study space. It wasn’t a terribly large room, but it comfortably fit a double bed, a few trunks and book cases as well as a telescope facing outside of the window. There were posters decorating the walls – most of them rocket blueprints – and a vintage computer in the corner.

Walter nodded with a small smirk. “I spent a lot of my summer nights here… I’d stay up really to chart the stars, and because my mom didn’t want me wondering from the barn to the house after dark, she and my dad installed a second bed up here for convenience. I’m surprised this place hasn’t changed since I was last here.” He swiped his finger along the computer desk and smudged the dust away with his thumb and forefinger. “It definitely could use some cleaning.”

“When were you here last?” Ralph asked as he mindlessly made his way over to the telescope.

“Oh, I was probably sixteen… maybe seventeen.” Walter replied as he turned on one of the lamp lights.

Ralph nodded distantly as he moved over from the telescope to one of the blueprints on the wall. “Was this the one you—”

“Hack into NASA to download?” Walter finished the boy’s sentence with a smirk and then nodded. “The very one.”

“Cool,” Ralph grinned as he picked up a book off of the bookcase nearby and thumbed through it. “Are you sure I can’t stay here?”

“I’m sure.” Walter nodded as he tossed one of his bags onto the bed. A plume of dust and dirt filled the air, causing both geniuses to cough. “It’s too dusty right now,” Walter added between coughs. “Perhaps once I clean it up a bit we can re-discuss the issue, but for right now, it might be best if I stay out here. Okay?”

Ralph signed in understanding. “Okay.”

Before the boys could continue their conversation (wherever it was leading), they jumped to a squeak coming from downstairs. Walter overlooked the loft’s railing and spotted Paige walking inside with a pile of sheets bundled in her arms. Immediately, Walter pretended he was busy rummaging through his bag, acting like he didn’t notice her approaching the stairs.

Ralph chose not to say anything and made his way back to the telescope. He glanced through the lens, knowing it was better to stay out of any conversation that might happen between his mother and Walter.

When she made it to the top of the stairs, Walter glanced at her when her foot creaked on the top step before returning to his empty task. Paige neatly placed the folded sheets and blankets on top of the trunk near the stairs. When neither genius would look her way, she chose that moment to interrupt the awkward silence.

“Louise asked me to bring these sheets to the loft in the barn. She figured the current ones would need washing.” Paige said quietly after clearing her throat to capture _anyone_ ’s attention.

Ralph suddenly realized he wanted to be _anywhere_ else and said, “Cool loft, Walter. I’m going to… check my email.” Without much effort, Ralph wormed his way around his mother and swiftly left the barn, leaving the awkward silence to the adults.

Paige dared to take a few more steps away from the stairs and crossed her arms. “I can see where you got your inspiration to call your apartment in the garage the loft…”

“Hn,” was all Walter said in response before he mindlessly began stripping the bed. He was willing to do _anything_ to keep himself busy as long as he didn’t have to directly speak to her.

A brief but deafening silence filled the air between them before Paige curled a strand of hair behind her ear and stammered, “W-well goodnight…” She whirled around to make her way back down the stairs, but Walter’s response stopped her dead in her tracks.

“How long are you staying?”

Paige didn’t turn around as she absentmindedly placed her right hand over her lower belly. “I don’t know…”

“So you and Ralph aren’t leaving tomorrow?” Walter’s voice sounded a tad hopeful, but he tried his best to mask it with disinterest.

“If I bring Ralph back to LA tomorrow, he’ll regress again; I just know it. He’s… happier here for obvious reasons… I don’t think I should ruin that for him so soon.” Paige replied softly, unable to tell Walter the truth behind their extended stay. “I don’t know what he’s told you, but this afternoon was the first real conversation we’ve had in weeks. I’m not ready to say goodbye to that just yet.”

Walter nodded slowly, relieved the boy wasn’t leaving just yet. But then he had to ask, “Won’t _they_ miss you?”

Paige spun around at this and frowned. “ _They?_ ”

“You know, Team ‘Centipede,’” he replied, giving the last word in his response air quotes. “I’m surprised they didn’t follow you here since they happen to follow you everywhere else.”

“What’s that supposed to mean,” Paige arched her brow, stepping closer to Walter. “I’ll have you know, Team Centipede is an equal partnership. I’m not the leader; we all make equal decisions for how to operate, so even though _you_ think your old teammates are too immature to act on their own, they’ll be completely fine while I’m gone. And besides, Cabe’s there; he said he’d help out with translating while I’m away.”

The last comment was a sore spot for Walter; the idea of Cabe leaving Scorpion was still a fresh wound he hadn’t recovered from yet. Not really wanting to get into another verbal battle with Paige, he grumbled, “Whatever,” and turned his back to her as he took the pillows off of the bed.

Paige inhaled deeply before poising herself. She turned around again and started for the stairs. “For what it’s worth,” Paige’s voice wavered a little, “they all miss you… especially Cabe.”

Walter swallowed thickly and paused briefly before turning to fetch the clean sheets. “If that’s your way of asking me to go back to the states and work on your team, then stop. I’m not going back, and nothing will change my mind.”

Paige inhaled and exhaled deeply as his words cut her like a knife. “I see…” She walked down a few steps and paused before turning back towards him. “You know, Cabe had such high hopes for you; he believed you would come back to LA if you knew how much everyone still cares for you….”

Walter scoffed. “Yeah right. Friends don’t stab other friends in the back.”

“Oh, you mean, just like boyfriends don’t cheat on girlfriends?” Paige couldn’t help herself; even if she came to terms that Walter didn’t actually cheat on her, the pain of finding out that he went to that stupid lecture with another woman still really got under her skin.

“I didn’t cheat!” Walter exclaimed almost too loudly, throwing his hands out in exaggeration.

“But you still went!” Paige matched his tone, marching back up the stairs towards him. “But what’s worse is that you lied about it! You told me the convention was cancelled; next thing I know, I find out the convention _wasn’t_ canceled, and you’ve taken a different girl! Did you honestly think I would be okay with that?!”

“The only reason I asked Florence is because I didn’t want to waste the tickets, and I knew she had a general interest in the topic; that’s all!” Walter defended himself as he crossed his arms in front of him and frowned deeply. His nostrils flared before adding.

“Then why did you tell me it was canceled?! If you didn’t want to waste the ticket, then why bother lying to me? I would have gone! We planned to go already!” Paige fumed, not backing down for an instant. “I should have known that the moment you dreamt about _her,_ we would fade into nothing.”

Walter heaved an aggravated sigh as he clenched his fists together. “First of all, that dream was just a stupid dream, and I’ve blocked it out of my mind for months. Second, the reason we didn’t go together is because I overheard you talking to Ralph, telling him how much you really didn’t want to go to the lecture. Ralph didn’t even seem all too interested either, which made me feel like I was burdening you. That’s why I lied about the convention. I was trying to spare your feelings since you obviously didn’t want to go.”

Paige felt a small twinge in her gut as she remembered telling her son how much she wasn’t looking forward to that night. “I would have gone,” she defended herself. “Even if I wasn’t ecstatic about it, I still would have gone.”

“Yes, but you would have wished you were somewhere else, having the time of your life.” Walter snapped, not buying her response. “I never forgot what you said that night… how much you hated the life we had… how you wished I was more _normal…_ how you hated how obsessive I am about facts… At first, I thought you were crazy for being so irrational, and maybe you were, and I thought about the many different ways I could attempt going after you, to prove you wrong, but,” Walter turned away from Paige and walked towards the window, “when I noticed Scorpion’s funds were continuously slipping, that all of my business clients were being taken away, I realized that Mark Collins was right. You and I… we’re just way too different. Oil and water. It’ll never work.”

“Well, in some way, it’s going to have to.” Paige clucked her tongue, and the genius glanced at her, cocking his eyebrow. Without a word from him, she continued as she mindlessly placed her right hand over her lower belly. “Otherwise, I’ll be raising another fatherless child by myself.”

* * *

 

~ **SCORPION ~**

* * *

 

**WriterFreak001: DUN DUN DUNNNNN**


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